Snow-capped mountains, luminous lakes,
window boxes brimming with bright red geraniums. Turrets and spires,
precariously pitched weathervanes, eaves jutting out from tiled roofs
sloping down the byways of hillside villages. Time measured by the
chiming of church bells, the strident announcements of cuckoo clocks,
and (with perfect precision) the ticking of timekeepers engraved with
the credit line: "Made in Switzerland."

A land that lends itself to story telling like Heidi,
an idyllic tale of a little girl who comes to live with her reclusive
and reluctant grandfather in his alpine hut and ends up melting his icy
demeanor and awakening feelings he thought were long dead. And the
inspirational tale of a 15-year-old boy who leaves home in the Black
Forest of Germany to seek his fortune and ends up in Geneva where he
founds a dynasty and a establishes a grand hotel.

When Adolphe Rodolphe Armeieder arrived in Geneva in
1875, he had already spent some years in England, Ireland and Italy
learning the hotelier's trade. Now, feeling he was ready to operate a
place of his own, he rented a pension in a building that had belonged to
the famous Swiss artist François Diday. There he worked long hours doing
what he could to save money (even mending worn-out carpets himself),
improving the facility and building up an increasingly fashionable
clientele until what had been a modest boardinghouse with room for 25
guests had been transformed into the Hotel Le Richemond, one of the
great hotels in Switzerland. Through four generations of the Armeieder
family, it would be handed down from father to son.

A wide and pleasing-looking building, le Richemond
remains a stately presence among Geneva's row of lake-front, largely
19th century structures with a stone façade that takes on a rosy hue and
tall windows that open onto little balconies enclosed by wrought iron
railings. Across the way is a small park, the Jardin Brunswick, with an
imposing Gothic structure at its center. This is the Brunswick Monument,
a mausoleum built for Duke Karl II of Brunswick who left his estate to
Geneva. Beyond the park is the magnificent waterfront where Lake Geneva
meets the Rhone River.

"This hotel was the place where my parents and their
friends would meet after work; my wife’s parents and their colleagues
from the United Nations would come here for cocktails," says Patrick
Mossu, who has been telling us this story in the lobby of the recently
renovated le Richemond. A native of Geneva with an engaging intellectual
air, Patrick has been general manager of the hotel for only a month; his
memories, however, go way back.

"For a long time,
le Richemond was an institution in Geneva," he tells us. "When I
turned 18, in a typical coming-of-age ceremony, my parents
brought me here for dinner, and my father presented me with a
Rolex watch.

"But then, some time in the 1990s, the
Armeieders ran into financial difficulties. They managed to
raise some cash, and the son bought a number of fine hotels in
Switzerland hoping to create his own group. But he did not make
a go of it. Finally, he decided to sell the group off, piece by
piece. By then, le Richemond was in decline. It had gotten old
and tired. People were saying it had lost its appeal."

General Manager Patrick Mossu

Patrick paused, warming to the climax of his story.
"It was at that point -- in July 2004, that the Rocco Forte group bought
the hotel. It was, in a way, a continuation of a legacy -- the moving of
a family business from one family to another family."

It would also be a continuation of the Rocco Forte
approach: taking over an existing structure -- be it a legendary hotel,
a former bank, a building that housed television network offices -- and
creating out of it a five-star hotel of high design that shares in
certain brand motifs while, at the same time, is deeply rooted in the
history of the property and its locale.

Late in 2005, the hotel closed for a complete
renovation. When it re-opened in September 2007, it contained 109 rooms
including 26 suites, each of its own distinctive design. In place of the
former and formal French antique furnishings was an eclectic décor
combining modern, Art Deco, and mid-twentieth-century- retro pieces of
fine materials and in vivid colors with Art Nouveau-type lighting
fixtures, Murano chandeliers in the ballroom, many mirrors, and sizeable
flower arrangements blending blooms, straw, greens and grasses in
stunning abstract design. Overall the aura was suggestive of post-war
Hollywood glamour. But distinctive pieces from the original hotel had
been retained, and on every landing and in each of the suites,
individual treasures: an antique clock or vase, piece of sculpture,
book, painting, a particular piece of furniture are strategically
placed, connecting yesterday to today.

Although the interior has been dramatically
re-imagined, the exterior remains unchanged except for the addition of a
seventh floor. Only swaths of red bunting are now wound through the
wrought iron and up the sides of balconies. They serve as signposts that
can be seen from blocks away. "You see the red, and you know you where
you are," says Patrick.

"When I walk in each day, I feel the vibes of this
hotel," he continues. "Our style is not only to be found in the décor
but in the staff and their level of service. The French- Swiss are
sometimes perceived as stuck-up. Not here. Everyone smiles, everyone is
warmly greeted. That is the le Richemond
style."

Lobby

Flower arrangement of stunning abstract design

"Le Bar"

Before the grand stairway: Personal Assistant to the G.M.: Raymonde
Croisier

Having visited other Rocco Forte properties, we had
come to see how style and service are constants throughout the
collection. So is cuisine. Reflecting the Forte family's ethnic origins,
every hotel has an Italian restaurant and chef.

“My father is a chef; I started working with him in
Palermo where I grew up," Chef Pietro Amato told us. "Some of the
recipes I use, I learned from him. That may be why my vision of the
kitchen is to respect the tradition.”

On a beautiful evening in early July, we were seated
on the street-front dining terrace of Sapori, le Richemond's Italian
restaurant, having a glass of sparkling Rosé and tempura Italian-style
(broccoli, carrot, zucchini and a huge olive stuffed with meat, all
dipped in batter, fried and pierced with a toothpick) when the handsome
Sicilian chef, who looks even younger than his 35 years, stopped by our
table. He wanted us to know he is a staunch traditionalist, he said – in
the kitchen at least. “I am not looking to be creative, to make original
combinations. I try to appeal to diners by the quality of the food, the
lightness of the dishes. We consider such questions as why this olive
oil, why this fish? Every ingredient is important.”

Pietro was dressed in dark burgundy instead of the
expected white. It was more in keeping with the decor - this is a Rocco
Forte property after all. But when it comes to presentation of his
dishes, he stressed, he will not add a sauce simply for the color. “A
dish is not a painting.”

He went on, “I have a team of 24 in the kitchen; they
are all in their 20’s, and they all share my philosophy. We are aware of
the new demands of clients, the new technology. But we don’t speed up
the process. For our minestrone, we cut the asparagus, the beans, all
the vegetables by hand. No machine. We respect the ingredients. You will
recognize what you eat here, and everything will be true to a specific
region of Italy.” He smiled. “Wait. You will taste and be the judge.”

So we did. While people strolled by on the
sidewalk below and through the Jardin Brunswick across the way, we dined
at what reputedly is the most authentic Italian restaurant in Geneva
relying on the advice of Maitre d' Pasquale Giordano, another
charismatic Italian import, who helped us limit our choices from a menu
of irresistible options. He suggested we begin with the chilled and
refreshing gazpacho, the first fulfillment of Pietro’s
tradition-oriented approach. “We peel fresh tomatoes, add salt and
pepper, fresh basil and olive oil,” he’d said. “Then we quickly steam
some scampi and langoustine and add it to the soup.” An aubergine
appetizer followed, the eggplant having been lightly fried in olive oil,
then baked with mozzarella imported from Italy and flavored with basil.

“The sea bass is excellent today,” Pasquale told us.
“It can be made a la plancha with mascarpone made with white eggs and
celery root -- the chef does not use cream. Or it can be cooked whole –
a little spicy, with a granite of sautéed sweet chard, and roast
potatoes.” But the clams were excellent as well. So while one of us
opted for the grilled sea bass which arrived with a platter of
chanterelle mushrooms, bak choy, thin string beans, red peppers, and a
sauce of fried tomatoes, pignoli and olive oil for the fish, the other,
typically, went for the clams with spaghetti in a sweet and tangy
sauce. Both dishes exemplified the credo Pietro articulated: the
wholesomeness and simplicity of undisguised natural ingredients of
excellent quality: olive oil, parsley, basil, a little white wine, fresh
fish. . . all hallmarks of one of the world’s favorite cuisines.

"Pietro is linked to the land," Pasquale said. "He
prides himself on knowledge of Italian cooking. There are other Italian
restaurants in Geneva, but this is the real thing."

For dessert, the effusive maitre d' convinced us to
throw caution to the winds and splurge on the sinfully decadent but
unquestionably delicious Moelloeux au Chocolat – a kind of chocolate
soufflé with coffee ice cream and pistachios

At the time of our visit, Sapori had been open for
less than a year. Yet already it seemed to have attracted a large local
following. When we stopped in for lunch, nearly every table, both inside
and out, was taken with people seemingly involved in some kind of
business. We ventured to guess those associated with the many
international banks and corporations in Geneva as well as United Nations
and Red Cross-related organizations have found their way to what a diner
at a nearby table told us is the best Italian restaurant in town.

She was part of a large group from Caterpillar
headquarters which is located in Geneva and starting lunch with gazpacho
ladled out from a huge tureen with a little dollop of sour cream added
to each serving. Wine had been poured. Without a tasting, a toast was
being made. Sommelier Sébastien Humbert told us it was a traditional
Swiss red, similar to a Beaujolais or Pinot Noir, not aged, suitable for
the summertime.

He brought us a bottle. It had the taste of blackberry
and was so perfect an accompaniment to a light lunch of raviolis the
size of a quarter filled with spinach and ricotta in a sauce seasoned
with sage, or linguini with chunks of fresh tomatoes. We took a look at
the next table – everyone was having pasta as well. If, as some say,
Geneva still retains the Calvinist ethos, the Italian spirit provides a
healthy counterpoint.

Chef Pietro Amato

Sommelier Sébastien Humbert

When the hotel opened after renovations,
local people were interested," Patrick told us. "They said
'We'll come and see,' and that's where it left off. But
then, little by little, le Richemond became the place to visit. The
décor is an attraction; also we present a different kind of
offering in Geneva. And we are the only five-star hotel in the
city with a full service spa with a hammam and sauna with a
range of aesthetic treatments based on both Eastern and Western
philosophies."

He continued, "I
look at my arrival form each day, and each day I see more and
more Rocco Forte clients. They know the quality of Rocco Forte
hotels; they're interested that this building is a monument.
They come, and then they become repeat guests. But I also see
people who had been le Richemond clients in the past who were unsure but
then decided to try it. They are returning too which leads to my
conviction that this will become the rendezvous for the Genevois.

"For me, however, the towering moment was when
I told my father I was taking over as general manager of le
Richemond, and he said to me 'Then I will go back.'

"He and my mother came for dinner, and -- as I
expected -- they liked it very much."

About the Authors: Myrna Katz Frommer and Harvey Frommer are a wife and husband
team who successfully bridge the worlds of popular culture and traditional
scholarship. Co-authors of the critically acclaimed interactive oral histories
It Happened in the Catskills, It Happened in Brooklyn, Growing Up Jewish in
America, It Happened on Broadway, It Happened in Manhattan, It Happened in
Miami. They teach what they practice as professors at Dartmouth College.

They are also travel writers who specialize in luxury properties and fine dining
as well as cultural history and Jewish history and heritage in the United
States, Europe, and the Caribbean. More
about these authors.